Wow I can relate with many here and am impressed to hear that some of the husbands are actually sharing the cooking responsibilities. Unfortunately for me it's not so simple. My parents are Dominican, I was born and raised here. My husband is Indian, born and raised in Gujarat. Growing up I surely knew how to make plantains but my mom did most of the cooking and I was always into all kinds of food here in NY. When I married I soon had to learn how to cook Indian food which means it has to be spicy!! Which is how I discovered why so many Southeast Indians love Mexican food. I tried to introduce Tostones to my husband but he didn't care for it much. The rice and beans were just a bit too bland for his palate therefore anything "spanish" just had to have lots of chili pepper in it! I have learned plenty about his cuisine, impressing his father and family to my surprise. Thanks to cookbooks and observations in family kitchens I can cook their Dal, rice, Saag, Roti, Pakode, and Raita, (translates to beans, rice, vegetable curry of greens, flatbread, chickpea flour fritters and yoghurt salad) and more. But I must admit that I'm still not confident enough to entertain the 20+ family members with my version of Indian cooking. However in our year and a half of marriage I have improved, and have even improvised with Sofrito in some of the dal (beans) dishes. I've learned that while I may not be serving up the traditional "Dominican Flag" spread I'm amazed at the similarities in techniques and ingredients. But lately I have been reintroducing the plantain...with plenty of chili powder and Adobo! Now he likes it!! I recall when he couldn't stand the taste of Malta and now he'll drink two at a time...(ironically it has to be Malta India!) So slowly but surely he's opening up and is discovering other foods which I have for so long been enjoying...Malaysian, Italian, Thai, Japanese, and some real Chinese cuisine. Now thanks to this site I can rediscover the joys of cooking other Dominican fare, of course with a twist...much more chili pepper, garlic and a touch of ginger for a kick. So don't be discouraged by the differences, be encouraged in the universal language of food. Our melting pot of ancestors have found ways to adapt otherwise we would not have all the great dishes we have today. Afterall we do have to eat to survive.